Senior HR Manager (Senior HR Business Partner) at Precision Development (PxD)

Role Summary:

Precision Development (PxD) is looking for a Senior HR Manager (also known as Senior HR Business Partner) to manage employee relations, people development, and safeguarding across our globally dispersed workforce of approximately 100 people, and growing. The right candidate will bring deep HR expertise and the maturity to operate independently across a dispersed team.

This is a hands-on role: you'll carry your own ER caseload, coach managers directly, and drive PxD's safeguarding agenda, while partnering with the COO on people strategy and organisational change.

Key Responsibilities:

Employee Relations

• Manage ER casework end-to-end - from day-to-day people issues and performance conversations to more formal processes - keeping documentation, templates, and case records accurate and current throughout.
• Provide clear, confident guidance to line managers, helping ensure outcomes are proportionate, policy-aligned, and well-documented.
• Handle sensitive cases with discretion and trust.
• Spot recurring themes in ER cases and share insights with the COO to help inform proactive, organisation-wide improvements.

Coaching, Mentoring & People Development

• Be a go-to coaching resource for line managers, helping them work through everyday people challenges, build their management skills, and feel more confident navigating HR matters - while supporting a wider coaching culture of better feedback conversations across the organisation.
• Provide mentoring to staff across levels, with particular focus on those in remote contexts where structured development is harder to access.
• Design or commission manager development programmes and people-skills learning tailored to PxD's dispersed, multicultural workforce.
• Identify talent and development needs across the organisation and, working with the COO, shape pathways that help people grow and stay.

Safeguarding

• Own PxD's safeguarding agenda - not just maintaining a framework, but actively developing it to reflect the complexity of PxD's operating contexts and the seriousness of our duty of care.
• Keep safeguarding policy, procedures, and escalation pathways current, coherent, and aligned with funder requirements and sector best practice.
• Serve as Designated Safeguarding Lead: first point of contact for concerns and disclosures, managing cases rigorously through triage, investigation, and appropriate referral - properly documented, closed appropriately, and escalated to leadership or relevant external bodies when required.
• Develop and deliver safeguarding training for all staff, adapted to role, geography, and risk context.
• Embed safeguarding into how PxD works with partners and delivers programmes - from due diligence and sub-grant conditions to risk mitigation in programme design and field delivery, working closely with the Programmes team.
• Report to the COO and contribute to funder or regulator reporting as required, proactively flagging gaps and evolving risks; lead PxD's PSEAH (Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment) agenda, ensuring policy, reporting mechanisms, and staff awareness cover both programme participants and the workforce.

Organisational Development & HR Leadership

• Partner with the COO on organisational change - including workforce planning and role design - bringing HR rigour and people judgment to decisions that affect the wider team.
• Translate PxD's strategic direction into practical HR priorities, contributing to the organisation's overall people strategy.
• Support people surveys and culture reviews as part of PxD's broader effort to be a well-run, inclusive organisation.
• Provide HR guidance across PxD's operating countries, navigating differences in local employment law and practice, and drawing on external legal advisers as needed to support sound decision-making.
• Partner closely with PxD's legal team on matters where HR and legal considerations intersect - including contracts, employment changes, and regulatory requirements across jurisdictions.

What You'll Bring:

• Significant experience (10+ years) in a senior HR generalist or HR Business Partner role, including substantial experience operating within an international NGO or development sector context.
• Proven track record managing employee relations casework end-to-end, with sound judgement on proportionality and risk.
• Experience serving as a Designated Safeguarding Lead or in a similarly senior role, including case management, training delivery, and policy development.
• Strong coaching and mentoring skills, with experience supporting managers and staff across a dispersed, multicultural, and remote workforce.
• Working knowledge of employment law and HR practice across multiple jurisdictions, and experience partnering with external legal advisers as needed.
• Experience partnering with senior leadership (e.g., COO or equivalent) on organisational change, workforce planning, and people strategy.
• A calm, kind, and steady approach to sensitive or high-pressure situations, balanced with rigour and sound professional judgement.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to operate independently and confidently across time zones and cultures.